Bahrain: While the F1 rolls, the authorities crush human rights

On the occasion of the Formula 1 Grand Prix, which will draw the whole world to Bahrain this weekend, Amnesty International publishes a damning report on the human rights situation.

On the occasion of the Formula 1 Grand Prix, which will draw the whole world to Bahrain this weekend, Amnesty International publishes a damning report on the Human Rights situation, four years after the suppression of demonstrations in 2011. “Four years on from the uprising, repression is widespread and rampant abuses by the security forces continue. Bahrain’s authorities must prove that the promises of reform they have made are more than empty rhetoric”, denounced Said Boumedouha, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme. All public demonstrations in the capital Manama, have been banned for nearly two years. Protests occurring outside the capital are regularly dispersed by security forces often firing tear gas and birdshot pellets, resulting in cases of serious injuries or death.